Help coming for abandoned animals

It was nearly three years ago that police found the emaciated body of Phantom, a yellow lab, in a Hudson condominium that had been abandoned months earlier.

The dog starved to death, spending his last days trapped alone in the foreclosed condo. Eventually neighbors called to complain about the smell coming from the apartment.

"From that day forward, I said, ‘You know what? This is never, never going to happen again," said Lyn Gorka, the real estate agent who was showing the home.

Since Phantom was found in the abandoned condo on Sept. 7, 2011, Gorka has been on a crusade - first for the people who abandoned Phantom to be held accountable, and then to ensure that guidelines are in place to prevent animals from being left behind in a home after the occupants leave.

She gathered thousands of signatures on a petition. She talked to local police, the district attorney’s office and the press.

Eventually, she teamed up with state Sen. Jamie Eldridge, D-Acton, on a bill that is now edging closer to becoming law. "An act protecting abandoned animals in vacant properties," filed early last year by Eldridge, was passed unanimously by the Senate on June 23 and has been sent to the House of Representatives for consideration.

The bill requires landlords or foreclosing property owners to inspect a home, apartment or condominium within three days of it being vacated to ensure there are no animals living in the home. If the person checking the home finds an animal, he or she is required to immediately contact the local animal control or police department, although the law stipulates the person who finds the animal would not be considered the owner or have to take custody of the animal.

Gorka said she is thrilled the bill made it this far and said she is confident it will pass the House in short order and make it to Gov. Deval Patrick’s desk.

Gorka’s efforts to bring the people who abandoned Phantom to justice ultimately failed. Police said that they didn’t have sufficient evidence to press charges. As someone who has found animals abandoned in vacant homes several times, however, Gorka said the legislation is a long time coming.

"Before this, I found dead cats. I found dogs who were half-dead," she said. "I just said this has got to stop."

Eldridge, in a phone interview last week, said the bill addresses a serious problem in a logical way.

"To me, it seemed like a really common-sense approach," he said. Eldridge, who said he expects the House to take up the bill quickly, said the bill’s progression demonstrates how a citizen can make real change at the state level.

"This is just a perfect example that citizens can make a difference," Eldridge said. "It’s the first session that the bill has been filed and it looks like it will become law. It’s very encouraging."

Page 2 of 2 - Rob Halpin, director of public relations at the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said the bill addresses a real problem in the state. Halpin said he recently made calls to the MSPCA’s three shelters to ask if there were any animals there that had been abandoned in buildings. He said all three shelters had at least five cats or dogs that had been found abandoned.

"This is a good bill. This is a bill that is necessary," Halpin said. "This is a bill that is going to help a lot of dogs, cats and other animals that would be in danger of starving to death."

Halpin said the MSPCA is "incredibly encouraged" by the speed with which the bill is progressing and said he believes it is emblematic of a shift in society’s view of animal abuse and neglect. He said the shift was best demonstrated by the response to the "Puppy Doe" case.

Puppy Doe was a young female pit bull that was tortured and abused so badly that it had to be euthanized. Radoslaw Czerkawski, 33, is awaiting trial on several animal abuse charges in the case.

The case drew international attention and ire from pet owners and activists, inspiring vigils in Massachusetts and elsewhere.

"Puppy Doe forever changed how we view crimes and negligence directed toward animals and our response to it," Halpin said. "There has been a shift in how we collectively view the importance of safeguarding animals."

Kendall Hatch is a staff reporter. He can be contacted at khatch@wickedlocal.com.